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It is espacially amazing given: - the problem blender is solving is super hard - the competition was way ahead - FOSS don't have great track record for this

It is espacially amazing given: - the problem blender is solving is super hard - the competition was way ahead - FOSS don't have great track record for this kind of challenge (gimp has never replaced photoshop nor LibreOffice MSO) - they don't have that much resources - professionals are very demanding - the graphic space is not really foss friendly - the amount of work they poured into this is incredible They are heroes really.

zaphar 10y ago
One of the reasons for their success are the Open Movie and Open Game projects[0]. It forces them to actually accommodate the needs of working artists and designers in their tool. It also showcases the power of Blender and gets the attention of potential users. The production values are actually pretty good for the projects which get's peoples attention. [0]: https://www.blender.org/features/projects/ https://www.blender.org/features/projects/
- pasta 10y ago
  I think the main reason is good software design. It's so modular that it's very easy to extend. A new fluid sim algorithm? A few months later Blender is shipping it. That's also the reason it's fast. It starts in one or two seconds.
  - badosu 10y ago
    I can't talk about the specifics of the software design. But if you take into account how the Blender project is handled with consideration of how to sustain itself via the Blender Foundation, and all the related projects, you can observe how an outlier it is compared to all similar ambitious projects that are not doing so well. This is a bad and a good sign: it makes evident how little FOSS projects take in account it's sustainability over time, on the other hand it presents an opportunity for huge improvements in this area.
astrodust 10y ago
The true heroes dragged the Blender code base away from SubVersion and on to Git. Makes it significantly easier for people to contribute.
nkassis 10y ago
"- professionals are very demanding" My hunch is Professionals as users might also be a benefit as they will tend to put up with bigger learning curves if they see benefits in the end. Also professionals don't tend to care as much about look of the UI (harder to do without dedicated design resources) vs efficiency of using it.
njharman 10y ago
- FOSS don't have great track record for this kind of challenge (gimp has never replaced photoshop nor LibreOffice MSO) That's like saying Linux doesn't have a great track record cause it hasn't replaced MS Windows. To be successful, they don't have to replace, just service a different niche / enable new or additional uses (e.g. I don't have $$$, I need better support&customization) Gimp was used for a few movies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CinePaint https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CinePaint
- sametmax 10y ago
  Linux is an exception in the non programming professional world. Accounting, project management, book edition, magazine layout, architecture, 3D object design... They are all eaten by proprietary software. A few successful examples of usage of X (like Gimp) in the industry doesn't make it remotely in the same league as proprietary star Y (like Photoshop). Don't try to create a reality out of the thing we all wish were true. FOSS is not winning those battles yet.

zaphar 10y ago

One of the reasons for their success are the Open Movie and Open Game projects[0]. It forces them to actually accommodate the needs of working artists and designers in their tool. It also showcases the power of Blender and gets the attention of potential users. The production values are actually pretty good for the projects which get's peoples attention. [0]: https://www.blender.org/features/projects/ https://www.blender.org/features/projects/

pasta 10y ago
I think the main reason is good software design. It's so modular that it's very easy to extend. A new fluid sim algorithm? A few months later Blender is shipping it. That's also the reason it's fast. It starts in one or two seconds.
- badosu 10y ago
  I can't talk about the specifics of the software design. But if you take into account how the Blender project is handled with consideration of how to sustain itself via the Blender Foundation, and all the related projects, you can observe how an outlier it is compared to all similar ambitious projects that are not doing so well. This is a bad and a good sign: it makes evident how little FOSS projects take in account it's sustainability over time, on the other hand it presents an opportunity for huge improvements in this area.

astrodust 10y ago

The true heroes dragged the Blender code base away from SubVersion and on to Git. Makes it significantly easier for people to contribute.

nkassis 10y ago

"- professionals are very demanding" My hunch is Professionals as users might also be a benefit as they will tend to put up with bigger learning curves if they see benefits in the end. Also professionals don't tend to care as much about look of the UI (harder to do without dedicated design resources) vs efficiency of using it.

njharman 10y ago

- FOSS don't have great track record for this kind of challenge (gimp has never replaced photoshop nor LibreOffice MSO) That's like saying Linux doesn't have a great track record cause it hasn't replaced MS Windows. To be successful, they don't have to replace, just service a different niche / enable new or additional uses (e.g. I don't have $$$, I need better support&customization) Gimp was used for a few movies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CinePaint https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CinePaint

sametmax 10y ago
Linux is an exception in the non programming professional world. Accounting, project management, book edition, magazine layout, architecture, 3D object design... They are all eaten by proprietary software. A few successful examples of usage of X (like Gimp) in the industry doesn't make it remotely in the same league as proprietary star Y (like Photoshop). Don't try to create a reality out of the thing we all wish were true. FOSS is not winning those battles yet.